If you don't mind my sharing my own, probably less spicy POC rep in audio drama take: the AD community's tendency toward celebration of "representation" within the medium as if this rep applies to anything substancially besides queer characters is exausting. Sure, queer rep is important but so often reading "there's rep for everything!" and the cast is like, 95% white? Or, bafflingly, people claiming diversity for something that is entirely fanon? Mmh.
Hi anon!
My take is just about as spicy, honestly.
There's a tendency to value "racially ambiguous" characters played entirely by White actors over actual BIPOC characters
(usually with BIPOC actors, though I'm not as strict about this since I don't mind White actors playing BIPOC characters so long as BIPOC voice actors can play White characters and no BIPOC actors lose voice acting opportunities. And as long as more attention is given to BIPOC creators than we're getting currently).
It sometimes feels as though BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People Of Colour) characters and creators are overlooked in favour of characters who are ostensibly White but drawn by fandom as BIPOC.
I've seen a lot of support in the community from fellow audio drama people; I've felt uplifted by my fellow creators who are White, and I always appreciate and value that. And obviously some shows are just well made and part of their success is based on other factors.
But as someone who's also aware of audio drama fandom, it's easy to see how much favour is given to White Characters drawn as BIPOC in comparison to characters who are BIPOC in text, and I'm not sure why.
That's my spicy opinion. I follow a few BIPOC creators but I can only name two that have an amount of success comparable to White audio drama creators (Gabriel Urbina of W359 fame and Octavia Bray of Atypical Artists), but my knowledge is limited.
And that's not even getting into female led audio drama, but I do love the success of creators such as Lauren Shippen in the space.
I'm not here to yuck anyone's yum or blame anyone for this phenomenon, but I do think it's worth thinking about. Why I see 50 brown Jonny Simses for every canonically brown Samama Khalid. Maybe it's all a coincidence based on other factors. Maybe White characters invite more imagination in their depiction or something.
I don't mind BIPOC depictions of ostensibly White or "racially ambiguous" characters, but I'm not a big fan of if they outnumber depictions of canon BIPOC characters. I just think the latter deserve more love.
I'm no expert. Also I'm mostly in the horror space, apart from my love of Life With Leoh (a sci fi romcom). My knowledge is very limited so if anyone would like to contradict me, I welcome it (especially if it means discovering more BIPOC led shows).
I don't want this to just be about complaining, so please feel free to shout out some fantastic BIPOC led audio drama (either created by or with a majority BIPOC cast) or even share some art you've done of characters from them and I'll happily share them.
My favorites are Wolf 359 (by Gabriel Urbina) and Life with Leoh (by Octavia Bray)!
Here's a few personal favourites:
Absolutely No Adventures: (Fantasy) Sig is an excellent baker, but unfortunately he's also the child of basically every prophecy. He's willing to help out, but he will be going on absolutely no adventures.
Desperado: (Urban Fantasy, Adventure, Supernatural, Horror Elements) Three young people under the patronage of death gods meet and set off on the same path for different reasons: for safety, for revenge, and to kill The Old Man In The Sky.
Hi Nay: (Supernatural Horror) Hi Nay follows Mari, a recent Toronto immigrant who's babaylan (shaman) family background draws her into helping people with various horrific supernatural problems around the city. Formatted as phone calls to her mother telling her what's happened.
InCo: (Sci-Fi) InCo follows a (seemingly cool, actually very stressed) interstellar information trader and her peppy AI as they find a strange boy floating in space, and become wrapped up in mystery and political intrigue.
Janus Descending: (Horror, Sci-Fi, Tragedy) A xenopalentologist and a xenoarcheologist investigate the abandoned ruins of an ancient alien civilisation and find more than they bargained for. Listen to the supercut for this one. Really clever use of a strange format: you hear her recordings first to last, and his last to first, and it's all the more heartbreaking for it.
Stories From Ylelmore: (Slice of Life, Urban Fantasy) Three kids: a witch, a werewolf, and a curse-bearer, solve some mysteries and go on everyday adventures.
The Bookmarks - Even though Mark eats off silver spoons and Marquelle is more used to plastic, the two are best friends. This improvised comedy series explores the bond of two friends who start a book podcast on their way to their shared goal of writing TheNextGreatAmericanNovel(TM).
Small Victories - A recently recovered drug addict tries to start her new lease on life, too bad life has it out for her. Ā This dramatic comedy follows Marisol through the ups and downs of her life.
Vega - In a fantasy futuristic world, Vega Rex is employed by her government to kill off the world's worst criminals. She's never met a criminal she couldn't catchā¦until now. Join Vega as she journeys through a world of bumbling apprentices, powerful technogods, and her biggest challenge yet. Hosted by Ivuoma Hall.
Temujin - A Webby-nominated audio drama on the rise of Genghis Khanāand the fall of his closest friend.
Caravan - (I think) a weirdāwest audio adventure about going through hell with the people you love
Unwell - Lillian Harper moves to the small town of Mt. Absalom, Ohio, to care for her estranged mother Dorothy after an injury. Living in the town's boarding house which has been run by her family for generations, she discovers conspiracies, ghosts, and a new family in the house's strange assortment of residents.
I'm not entirely sure because the parameters for whiteness have shifted (gotten less stringent in order to keep the majority) since I was a kid (idk what's going on with latino/hispanic like... official classifications right now?? Now there are like 2 boxes?? I'm not sure how the writer self id's either).
Kalila Stormfire's Economical Magic Services - After a controversial fallout with her coven, Kalila Stormfire must juggle complex clients and an anonymous critic hellbent on besmirching her new business. The decaying urban block where Kal operates appreciates her affordable experience in a broad range of supernatural ailments and remedies. Still, Kal is not sure if her talent is enough to stop whoever has been posting bad reviews and persuading customers to cancel appointments.
The Ortiz Twins are coming home - After a face-to-face with an ancient pitĆ”o (an ancient god) who has forgotten his name, the twins are sent on an adventure through the Underworld and face restless spirits, as well as their long lost parents. A new fantasy audio drama about twins on the border reconnecting with their indigenous roots and their familyās forgotten history.
